Everyone loves being on holiday, but one of the things parents often struggle with is finding enough things for the kids to do during the school break. Well…this week and next, Leicester has the answer: the Community Easter Games.

The games are funded by the Government, through its Connecting Communities fund. At the opening event, there was some brilliant dancing by the Street Vibe group and an urban climbing wall, which I managed to scale! I’ve also been to one of the ‘Wii – Give it a Go’ sessions at New Parks’ lovely new library, where I well and truly embarrassed myself with my attempts to dance.

Yesterday, the weather cleared for a few hours which was great news for the families at the ‘Cycling in the Park’ session in Western Park. This was a chance to try out the cycle trails in and around Western Park, get some free bike maintenance, and learn about what cycling is on offer after school and at the weekends – all under the trained supervision of the Western Park Freeriders team Matt, Phil and Rick.

The Easter Games aren’t just for kids and families. There’s also a badminton session for the over 60s and a football tournament for seniors. The Games are all about bringing communities together: of all ages, from all faiths, and from every part of Leicester. That’s what Labour means when we say we will help strengthen fairness in communities – one of the 5 pledges in our election campaign.

There’s loads more activities going on over the weekend, and next week (click here to find out more). So whether you fancy basketball, boxing, canoeing, squash or gardening – there’s something for everyone. See you there!

I wish I could take every single person who thinks political parties are all the same, and that there’s no difference between Labour and the Tories, to meet the young people who’ve got work through Labour’s Future Jobs Fund.

Like the 17 young men who’ve just started work with Leicester Council’s Housing Department helping to improve local communities in and around New Parks, cleaning up communal areas and doing gardening, fixing fences and basic repairs.

Excuse the cliché but this really is a ‘win win’. The Council can tackle lots of things that matter to local residents, but which often end up at the bottom of the list. And young people can get training, new skills, work and an income – plus a hefty dose of self-confidence.

The young men I met in New Parks thought the Future Jobs Fund was a great scheme.

Some of them would have liked it to start before they’d been unemployed for 6 months because the longer you leave it, the harder it is to get back into work and the routine of work. All of them wanted to work more hours and earn more money, and for the scheme to last longer than 6 months. I said the only way they could guarantee that was by voting Labour at the next election.

The big news from our campaign this week is that Harriet Harman, Deputy Leader of the Labour Party, came to visit us in Leicester West. Harriet met and talked to local residents about the issues that matter to them, and what more people think needs to change in this area.

First up was the beautiful Brite Centre in Braunstone. We caught the end of a half-term childcare session (lots of glitter everywhere) and popped-in to talk to a group of men who’ve been getting new skills and were about to take an exam – they seemed very happy to see us but I hope we didn’t put them off! We also talked to the librarians about all the activities that go on during the week and their plans for the future, and chatted to people in the café. Lots of local party members also came to meet Harriet at the Brite Centre, which was great.

Our next stop was the New Parks Children’s Centre on Pindar Road. The Centre provides fantastic help and support to local parents. On the day we were there (Wednesday) there was a midwives health clinic, a ‘Mums to Tums’ group for expectant mums and new dads, a ‘Parents as Partners in Early Learning’ play session, and a new group for teenage parents. On top of all this, a ‘Multi Access Centre’ was giving help and advice to parents about training and employment.

I was really proud to show Harriet how Labour’s investment is making a difference here. It makes me angry when the Tories say they would immediately cut public spending, because it would put services like these at risk. And their proposal to make Children’s Centres available only to the very poorest families would be a real blow to hundreds of ordinary families here. That’s why I’m campaigning to make sure we continue to invest in supporting local parents and families in Leicester West, and that services like those at the Brite Centre and New Parks Children’s Centre are available in every community that needs them.

If truth be told I’m a bit of a fitness fanatic. 5 or 6 mornings a week I go for a run or to the gym. So I thought a trip to the New Parks Community Boxing Gym would be a piece of cake.

I couldn’t have been more wrong! After a couple of minutes sparring I was completely exhausted. My heart was pounding out of my chest, and I thought I might even be sick. Not exactly the impression I wanted to give as an aspiring politician.

But boxing has got me hooked (pardon the pun), as it has the many boys and girls who use this brilliant community resource every week. The Friday evening I went had kids of all ages, including children who are in the care system and from the local traveller community (obviously the younger ones just do the exercises and don’t actually fight). Its a great way to get fit and healthy, but it also keeps children off the street and out of trouble. Its run by Serina – a fantastic woman who’s making a real difference to families and children in the local community.

Collapsed on my sofa later that evening, I started thinking about what more we could do to help projects like this. Labour’s done a huge amount to help give children the best start in life: extending maternity leave and pay, increasing Child Benefit and tax credits, introducing Child Trust Funds and investing in new Sure Start Children’s Centres and local schools.

But life doesn’t get any easier as kids get older. In fact, most parents will tell you its tougher looking after teenagers, especially trying to find them things to do after school and in the evenings.

So, how about this as an idea for the next manifesto? A new Sure Progress programme – a kind of Sure Start for teenagers – which gives young people things to do like sport and music, and also has on hand help and advice about education, training and work, and looking after your health. (I should at this point hold my hands up and say this idea is shamelessly stolen from my former colleagues at the Institute for Public Policy Research.)

They key would be to make sure this isn’t run like a typical Government initiative but a bottom-up, grass roots programme supporting organisations like the New Parks Community Gym.

I know money is tight, and public spending is going to come under a lot of pressure. But investing in something like this could benefit young people, families and communities – and save us all money in the long run.